Why is a lower percentage of body fat beneficial to triathletes?
Too much body fat hurts your performance because fat cannot produce force – it only provides momentum. Optimal performance relies on the body’s ability to generate force, sustain aerobic and anaerobic power, and the capacity to overcome resistance or drag. The smaller you are (through less body fat), the lower the resistance or drag your body is likely to encounter from air (running and cycling) and water (swimming). Other benefits of reducing body fat include decreasing your risk of muscular and skeletal injury, improved tolerance to training in hot and humid environments and a reduction in the energy cost associated with training. This can be even more helpful as you cover all 140.6 miles of an Ironman.
